Arms Wide Open
by shiroryu of the moon
Summary: Inuyasha is the best when it comes to dealing with the bad guy. Kick their butts! But what will he do when he's given a situation that's not handled so easily?


Well, here's my 3rd songfic. I really hope you guys like it. I did. But I sorta have to, since I wrote it. So, enjoy!  
  
Btw, the sequel to Just Those Rainey Days is on its way. I just never post stories until I'm completely done. It's against my author's code, or whatever.  
  
Disclaimer: I swear, I HATE doing these things. Well, I clearly am not a member of Creed, so I didn't write the song that I used in this fic, (which by the way is called "Arms Wide Open") so, don't sue me if any of you who are true members read this. Did I mention how much I HATE doing disclaimers? In my personal opinion, they're a huge waste of time and energy, not to mention I think it's a bit on the stupid side. I mean, I will obviously one day own Inuyasha, (once I hit it big in he lottery) so why should I bother writing that I don't own him? But for right now, (to avoid lawsuits) I officially disclaim all rights to Inuyasha. Not mine, didn't make him up, yadda, yadda, yadda. I'm sure Rumiko Takahashi likes to share. I'll have to call her...  
  
~Arms Wide Open~  
  
***** *****  
  
**** ****  
  
*** ***  
  
** ** * * ** ** *** *** **** ****  
  
***** *****  
  
I'm going to tell you a story.  
  
No, I guess that's the wrong wording for it. It's not a story. It's what really happened. What happened to me and how it changed me. I mean, I suppose it's your story too. Man, gotta quit using that word. What else will work? Detailed account of past events? Nah. That just sounds lame. 1st person narrative? Yeah right. OK, for lack of a better word, I'll just go with story, even though I hate that word. That'll have to do. Can't think of anything else right now.  
  
A feudal-age story.  
  
A true one.  
  
I had been sitting in my tree as usual, thinking. Actually, I get a lot of my thinking done up there. Go figure. For some reason, sitting in that tree, (The Sacred Tree I was trapped to for 50 years), helps bring me peace. Not as much as when I'm with Kagome, but enough to satisfy me for a while. But that's beside the point. I was up there, when Kagome's scent came whistling through the forest like music through the ears. I really love that smell. So I waited for her to approach. When she finally got close, she stopped short. Pretending I didn't notice her, I closed my eyes and feigned sleep. Outta the corner of my eye, I saw her standing there, looking at me. It was a weird look. Unlike any I'd ever seen her give me. I opened my eye wider to take her in. There was something different about her. Something I couldn't put a finger-er-claw on. Like she was more complete or something. I guess I could understood why. We had finally, after 4 long years, beat Naraku. Actually it was Kagome who gave the finishing blow with her sacred arrow. It had been a long, hard battle. I honestly thought that we had seen our last day (not to sound pessimistic or anything). But Kagome wouldn't give in. She kept those arrows coming, and man, I would not have liked to have been on the receiving side of those things. I'm sure Naraku didn't either, but no one cares about him. She showed more heart and courage than I thought she had in her entire body. I continued to look at her standing below me. She was rather fidgety. Kept staring at her feet and messing with that hair of hers. That long, black, silky-smooth hair...whoa...I'm starting to sound like Miroku here. Ugh. Anyways, she finally looked back up and took a deep breath.  
  
"Inuyasha?" she called  
  
"What?" I mumbled.  
  
"I need to talk to you. There's something you need to know."  
  
"OK, so talk." I called back.  
  
She kept giving me that funny look, then said, "Um...could you come down here? I need to see your face."  
  
I sighed heavily and jumped down. We sat facing each other cross-legged. She was looking nervous.  
  
"We really need to talk." She said.  
  
This sounded all too familiar. We had had a conversation like this a few weeks ago. And I didn't particularly like how it had started.  
  
*Flashback*  
  
"Inuyasha, could you please come down here? We really need to talk." Kagome looked up at me. Once again I was happily perched in my tree and had no intentions whatsoever of getting out.  
  
"Nothing doing." I called back.  
  
"It's really important." She said.  
  
I didn't even bother to answer. She sighed heavily, walked up to the tree, and stretched her had out to me. Instinctively I quickly jumped down, scooped her up, jumped back into the tree and set her in front of me on the branch I was sitting on with ease.  
  
"Are you OK? You look kinda different." I said. She looked kinda pink in the face. Why do girls get so pink like that? And for no particular reason too.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine." She said as she adjusted to the branch she was sitting on. She sat cross-legged, facing me.  
  
"So what's on your mind?" I asked.  
  
"Um..." she hesitated.  
  
"Don't have all day." I grumbled.  
  
Expecting a glare, I was surprised to see her eyes glossy. Jeez! She was gonna cry! Not wanting to take a chance on making her cry (I hate it when she does that) I quickly changed my tone.  
  
"Kagome, what's the matter?" I asked in alarm. She was making me nervous.  
  
Still fidgety, she looked down at her hands in her skirt. I tapped my fingers on my knees impatiently, waiting for an answer. What I got was the question I had been trying to avoid for the last 4 years or so.  
  
"Do you still love Kikyo?" she whispered.  
  
You have no idea how much I wished I had just jumped to the ground like previously asked. Because that was one long fall I took after Kagome's question. Falling 30-feet out of a tree really hurts.  
  
*Thud*  
  
"Inuyasha! Are you alright?" Kagome called from the tree. She scrambled down as fast as I suppose she could (which really wasn't all that fast. But don't tell her I said so) and bent down to inspect me.  
  
"Feh. I'm fine. It was just a little fall." I mumbled somewhat stupidly.  
  
"Inuyasha, your eyeballs are rolling haphazardly around in your head." Kagome pointed out.  
  
Very true.  
  
After my eyes stopped circumnavigating through my skull, I focused in on Kagome. She had scooted over to one side of the Sacred Tree, and I on the other, leaning back on it. We did most of our important talks like this.  
  
"So?" she asked from behind me.  
  
"So what?" I answered.  
  
"You know what."  
  
"Do I still love Kikyo?" I reiterated.  
  
"..."  
  
"Yes."  
  
Kagome was silent for a minute. Then, in a shaky voice she said, "OK... I understand." Already I could smell hot tears pouring down her face. I heard rustling and realized she was getting up to leave.  
  
"Sit back down. I'm not done yet." I said to her. This whole thing needed to be cleared up once and for all. Kikyo had died a few days previous. Naraku had banished her back to Hades. And she knew she'd be going soon. So the night before her last confrontation with Naraku, she came to me. In a dream. I had no idea she could do that. Kinda creepy. But that's what she did. And I knew that it was more than a dream. She was really talking to me.  
  
*The Dream*  
  
I was pinned to the Sacred Tree and she stood facing me with her bow and arrows flung on the ground.  
  
And then it started to snow.  
  
I shivered in the dream, wondering why on earth it was snowing.  
  
"Are you cold Inuyasha?" Kikyo asked me.  
  
"Yeah, I am." I answered. I guess my blue lips threw her off.  
  
"This is how I am. Cold as snow. All the time. I am never warm inside."  
  
"Kikyo..."  
  
"Don't get poignant. I have no time for that."  
  
That was Kikyo. Straight forward and curt.  
  
"Naraku is coming for me." She said.  
  
Now that had made my blood boil. I knew Naraku was after her life, but Onigumo's heart continued to lust for her love. It really was sickening and I got nauseous and defensive just thinking about it.  
  
"Don't worry. I'll protect you." I assured her. I moved forward to embrace her, then realized I was still firmly lodged into the tree.  
  
"No. I put you there for a reason this time. So you wouldn't try anything."  
  
"Kikyo, I-"  
  
"Be quiet. I came to you ask you something."  
  
"What?" I had figured she hadn't come just to discuss the weather. But what could she possibly want from me?  
  
"Will you die with me?"  
  
If I could've, I would've probably fell over from shock. But that arrow kept me in an upright position.  
  
"Inuyasha, you and I both know that I am no longer apart of this world. It is only a matter of time before I am taken from it back to where lost souls of the dead reside. You said your life is mine, and mine is yours and that you would follow me to Hades. Will you hold true to your word? Will you follow me?"  
  
She looked at me, with her brown eyes. So unlike Kagome's. Kagome's sparkled with life, love, and innocence. Kikyo's had been dulled by death, hate, and an icy feeling of foreignness. This was not the Kikyo I had once known. This was not the Kikyo I had once loved. Then realization hit. What Kaede had been trying to tell me all these years... I finally understood. This was not Kikyo.  
  
*back to flashback*  
  
"No Inuyasha. I don't need to hear it. You don't need to explain yourself to me." Kagome said, interrupting my story.  
  
"No Kagome, you do need to hear and I do need to explain myself to you. I do still love Kikyo. But you have never met Kikyo." I sighed.  
  
*back to dream*  
  
"You're not Kikyo." I said quietly to the dream figure of Kikyo.  
  
"Excuse me?" she said with somewhat disbelief.  
  
"You are not Kikyo. At least not anymore." I said louder.  
  
We both stood there, eyeing each other. I took a deep breath to further explain myself. "Kikyo wouldn't have ever been able to become this cold. She had too much love in her. You're not her. You're not the Kikyo I loved 50 years ago. You're a mere shadow of her. I have someone real now. And I won't abandon her. Not anymore. So no. I won't follow you in death. I don't know who you are."  
  
Kikyo stared at me for a long time. A very long time.  
  
When she finally spoke, it wasn't what I was expecting. I was expecting harsh words, a slap, a well-placed kick, maybe even a sacred arrow through the head. Women can get really violent, ya know.  
  
Instead, I got a hug.  
  
My eyes widened in shock as her hair tickled under my nose.  
  
"Ki-Kikyo..." I whispered.  
  
"Thank you." She pulled back and looked at me. "Thank you." She said again.  
  
Now, I was completely stupefied. What the heck was going on? Thank you? What was wrong with her?  
  
"I can go now. I don't have any reason to be angry with you anymore. There's nothing binding me here any longer. You've finally let me go. You've let your unsound, blind feelings for me go free. I'm not bound to this world anymore. I'm free!"  
  
"Uh..." I said intelligently.  
  
Kikyo gave me one last hug. Then she started getting fuzzy on me.  
  
"Kikyo! Wait!" I called.  
  
*End of dream*  
  
"The next day, Naraku killed her." I said to Kagome.  
  
"Wow. I never knew. Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know."  
  
I heard Kagome move around uncomfortably. She still was thinking about what I had just said. About loving Kikyo.  
  
"Yes." I said.  
  
"Yes what?" Kagome asked confusedly.  
  
"Yes I love Kikyo."  
  
"Oh." She said deflated. I heard her sigh again. An awkward silence fell over us. We sat, looking in our own directions for about 10 minutes. I got up and sat down on Kagome's side of the tree, as it was getting dark. I looked up to see the stars shining faintly against the last few rays of sunlight, still fighting for time on earth. The moon had slowly, but surely made its presence known. As it got darker and the moon shone brighter, I snuck a peek over at Kagome. She too was watching the sunset. (Although I prefer to call it the moonrise.) I saw the silver light of the heavenly body spill over her. It was an amazing sight. Somehow, without ever realizing it, Kagome had changed me. A lot. I would've never noticed the sky like that on my own. Kikyo never looked at it like that either. Just Kagome. There was something about Kagome that made me notice those types of things. Something about her that made me think a little harder. Something about her that had changed me forever. I was thankful to her for that.  
  
And right then and there, I figured it out. It had taken 4 long years, but at long last I finally understood just what Kagome meant to me.  
  
I sucked in a deep breath. Without looking at her, I said "But I don't think I was ever in love with Kikyo."  
  
"What?" Kagome was taken aback. I guess I would've been too, had I been in her shoes.  
  
Or if I had shoes to begin with.  
  
"I loved Kikyo. She was there for me, and taught me a lot about life. She was the first person I ever loved after my mother died. But I've been mistaken for the last 50 years or so. I was never in love with Kikyo. I just loved her."  
  
Kagome was silent. For some reason, I was glad for her lack of words. It helped me go on.  
  
"See, I've never been in love before. I don't know what it's like."  
  
"Inuyasha..."  
  
"Until now." I finished. I turned and looked Kagome right in the eye. "Without my ever noticing it, I fell in love with you Kagome. So, you asked me if I still loved Kikyo. Yes I do. But I'm in love with Kagome."  
  
*Squeak*  
  
My eyes opened wide in awe. Had she just squeaked?  
  
"Did you just squeak?"  
  
Instead of an answer, Kagome threw her arms around me and cried into my neck.  
  
Hard.  
  
"Um..." Had I done something wrong? Why on earth was she crying? Why didn't she say anything in response to my confession? As she continued to soak me with her salty tears, I felt a lump rise in my throat. I really hate seeing her cry.  
  
"I'm...er...sorry?" I offered. I had no idea whatsoever why she was sobbing like this. You'd think I'd just killed her grandmother or something.  
  
"Uh...Kagome? Please stop crying. I'm sorry." I tried again. She finally untangled herself from my hair and looked at me with bloodshot eyes.  
  
"What are you apologizing for?" She sniffled.  
  
"I'm not exactly sure. You just started bawling on me, and I figured it was my fault." She gave me a warm smile (have you ever seen her smile? It can brighten ANYONE'S day. I swear.)  
  
"I'm crying because I'm lucky." She said.  
  
"Huh?" I said.  
  
"I'm lucky to have you." She said.  
  
"That works the other way around. I'm the lucky one. The chance to have someone like you doesn't come around once in a lifetime. It took 500 years."  
  
She smiled at me again. "I love you so much Inuyasha."  
  
"Love me or are in love with me?" I asked suspiciously.  
  
"Both."  
  
This was it; what most of our 4 years together had led up to. I put my hands on her hips and leaned in as she wrapped her arms around my neck and moved toward me. Our lips filled in any and all spaces between us for the very first time.  
  
*End of flashback*  
  
Kagome was still fidgeting with her hair as she hesitated.  
  
"What's the matter?" I asked.  
  
"Things are about to seriously change." She said.  
  
"Uh...OK?" I proceeded carefully. "Like how?"  
  
She inhaled deeply, like it was giving her strength.  
  
"Is it about the jewel? Don't worry. We only have a couple more fragments to find. We'll find them in the next few weeks if we're lucky. So don't stress." I assured her.  
  
"That's not it."  
  
"Oh crap! Please tell me you don't have another stupid test thing to take! I thought you said you were on that summer-break-whatever." I said, getting angry just thinking about it.  
  
"Inuyasha! You're not listening to me!"  
  
"Well you're not saying anything! If you would just open your mouth and talk, I wouldn't have to try and guess what the heck has got you so freakin worried!" I had gotten rather annoyed by then.  
  
"Do you remember that night we first kissed?" she blurted out.  
  
Well of course I remembered. It was kinda hard to forget something like that.  
  
"Yeah, of course I remember. It's kinda hard to forget something like that." I said to her.  
  
"Remember what we did afterwards?" she asked blushing slightly.  
  
Well of course I remembered that too! That would've been impossible to forget. And just to get it out of the way, we did it. OK? Plain and simple. Kagome and I did it. Not going into any details, because first off: that's none of your business, second: I'd sooner die than talk about it, and third: I have no intentions whatsoever of X-rating my life story. So don't ask, I'm not gonna tell.  
  
"Uh...yeah, I remember." I said slowly. What was she getting at? Was I being roped into something?  
  
Kagome took a really deep breath.  
  
"I'm carrying our child, Inuyasha."  
  
* * ~Well I just heard  
  
The news today  
  
Seems my life  
  
Is gonna change~ * *  
  
I sat there. I stared. I think I almost passed out. "What?" I said in rather high-pitched voice.  
  
"I'm pregnant. I just found out today." Kagome said shakily. I continued to stand there in amazement.  
  
"Will you please say something?" Kagome pleaded. She looked like she was about to cry, but this time I wasn't even gonna try to make her stop crying. I was lost in my own world. Somewhere outside of it, I heard Kagome get up and run away, while I sat firmly planted in the ground.  
  
* * ~I close my eyes  
  
Begin to pray  
  
Then tears of joy  
  
Stream down my face~ * *  
  
I closed my eyes in meditation. Pregnant? That meant she was carrying a child.  
  
My child.  
  
I was going to be a father. One day someone would call me "Dad"  
  
* * ~With arms wide open  
  
Under the sunlight  
  
Welcome to this place  
  
I'll show you everything  
  
With arms wide open  
  
With arms wide open~  
  
*  
  
*  
  
It was overwhelming and a whole lot to handle. I mean, I was only 21! (Well that's not counting the time I was so happily lodged in that stinking tree. If you think about it, I was really 71. And if you wanna REALLY get technical, I'm a dog demon, and 1 human year is like 7 for me. So in all honesty, I was 497. However, I was sleeping for about 350 of those years. So if you cheat a bit, I'd only been around and conscious for 119 years. But that is WAY beside the point. I was going with the 21 age. Sounds better anyways. Now that I'm done with that little tangent...) How the heck could I be a father? I had enough trouble keeping up with myself! I couldn't. This was a mistake. A huge one. Kagome couldn't be pregnant and I couldn't be a father. It just wasn't happening. I just wanted to be Inuyasha. Not some kid's Daddy. I wasn't ready for it. I wasn't ready for this! I still felt like a kid myself!  
  
* * ~Well I don't know  
  
If I'm ready  
  
To be the man  
  
I have to be~ *  
  
*  
  
But then, I sat back and thought about it some more. What about Kagome? How was she handling this? She probably didn't have "Become a mother" on her List of Top Ten Things to Do in the Next 9 Months. Like it or not, this was both of our responsibilities. I loved Kagome. And I would stick by her, through everything. I sighed deeply.  
  
* * ~I'll take a breath  
  
I'll take her by my side  
  
We'll stand in awe  
  
We've created life~ *  
  
*  
  
I thought about how drastically my life was about to change. I couldn't just go roaming anymore. I probably couldn't fight with Kagome as much anymore. I'd have to actually take care of this kid. After awhile, I stopped depressing myself, (I mean, it fatherhood couldn't be all THAT bad, right? Why would guys become fathers all the time if it was terrible?) I stood up and went to find Kagome, who turned out to be sitting on the lip of the well. She was still crying hard, so she didn't notice me until I sat down next to her.  
  
"You know, I didn't ask for this." She wailed. "I never wanted to be 19 and pregnant. But I have to deal with it. This is my child."  
  
"Correction, OUR child." I said.  
  
Kagome looked up at me with eyes wide and puffy from crying. "What? You'd think I'd let you raise my son by yourself? And have him be a pansy? I don't think so." I told her.  
  
"You're really gonna do this with me? You'll stay with me?"  
  
I put an arm around her shoulders and brought her to my chest. "I will never abandon you. This is our family now. And I'm not going anywhere. The real question is, will you stay with me?"  
  
Kagome pushed herself from my embrace to look me dead in the eye. "Of course I'm staying with you. When have I ever not stayed?"  
  
"That's what makes you so amazing. And I'm proud to have a child with you."  
  
"So you're not angry?"  
  
"What the heck would I have to be angry about?"  
  
"I dunno. Some guys who've been put in this same situation get mad, deny the child, and leave without a second glance. I was afraid I'd lose you."  
  
"Kagome, not sure if you've noticed, but I'm not just "some guys".  
  
"Believe me, I've noticed." She grinned.  
  
"Then don't doubt me. You and I are gonna be a family, with our soon to be son." I said earnestly.  
  
"How do you know it won't be a girl?" Kagome said as she narrowed her eyes.  
  
"It's a guy thing. That kid is gonna be a son." I smirked. "To me and you." I added as I leaned in to kiss her.  
  
* * ~With arms wide open  
  
Under the sunlight  
  
Welcome to this place  
  
I'll show you everything  
  
With arms wide open  
  
Now everything has changed  
  
I'll show you love  
  
I'll show you everything  
  
With arms wide open~ * *  
  
"Alexander?"  
  
"Wussy."  
  
"Jazmen?"  
  
"Not a girl."  
  
"Victor?"  
  
"Stupid."  
  
"Laura?"  
  
"Not a girl."  
  
"Michael?"  
  
"Lame."  
  
"Victoria?"  
  
"It's not a girl."  
  
"Ashley?"  
  
"Just said it's not a girl."  
  
"Ashley can be a boy's name too."  
  
"No son of mine will be named Ashley. That's the girlish thing I've ever heard.  
  
"But-"  
  
"Look, do you want to unpeel your son's face from the ground everyday?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Then no Ashley."  
  
"Myron?"  
  
"Sounds like something I'd name a monkey."  
  
"Ai?"  
  
"Doesn't that mean love?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Not a girl. Moving on..."  
  
"Elliot?"  
  
"Can you say 'idiot'?"  
  
"Dakota?"  
  
"..."  
  
"Nicholas?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Rachel?"  
  
"Where the heck are you getting those?" I jumped down from the top of Kaede's hut to sit next to Kagome, who was leaning against the tree reading from a book.  
  
"My child will not be named Inuyasha Jr." Kagome said, never tearing her eyes from the book.  
  
"I wasn't gonna suggest that." Which was a huge lie. That's EXACTLY what I was thinking. "What're you reading?" I asked quickly to change the subject.  
  
"Baby name book."  
  
"Who needs that?"  
  
Kagome had been on a baby frenzy. She'd been buying baby clothes from her time, baby food, baby diapers (which she unfortunately explained to me what those were. I've got one thing to say about that. Ugh.) For the last 8 months, she'd been going crazy.  
  
"Inuyasha! I am NOT ABOUT TO LET THIS BABY COME INTO THIS WORLD WITHOUT A PROPER, WELL-THOUGHT OF NAME!!! SO WILL YOU PLEASE BE A LITTLE MORE SUPPORTIVE AND A LITTLE LESS ANNOYING?!?!?!"  
  
Did I mention she was just about the moodiest, unstable thing on the planet? Well, she was. And I made the mistake of telling her so.  
  
"SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! SIT! " she screamed.  
  
Yeah, that was a huge mistake on my part. She sat me so hard, I almost made it to the center of the earth. But not quite. I did, however, get a crap load of dirt shoved down my throat, an imprint of my face in the rock hard ground, and the headache of a century. Definitely not one of my best ideas.  
  
I pulled my face from the ground and coughed up the soil packed in my lungs. "You know, killing your child's father is NOT a good idea." I said heatedly.  
  
"You know, pissing off a pregnant woman is just flat out stupid." Kagome said as she watched me remove the half of Japan that was in my mouth. I just rolled my eyes in annoyance and stomped off.  
  
"Inuyasha!" She yelled at me.  
  
"What?" I yelled back.  
  
"Can you get me some water? And some bread? Fish would be nice. Oh, with some berries! And since you're going anyways, can you get me some celery? Oh and don't forget the pickled peaches!"  
  
My god! That woman could eat twice as much as me (which is really saying something.) Pride still wounded from that last sitting (along with my face), I decided to take the stubborn approach.  
  
"Heck no! Get it yourself!" I yelled back. I really wish I had just slept in that day. Because I obviously needed a little more sleep to function properly.  
  
"SIT!"  
  
"Ugh..." I groaned.  
  
"Now, will you please cooperate with me?" she yelled at me. Not wanting to infuriate the psycho anymore, I nodded in compliance.  
  
Her countenance brightened considerably. She smiled and walked off. That was getting really annoying. I headed off in the general direction of the village, but I don't remember anything. I hadn't even been thinking. I'm pretty sure I do remember dropping Kagome's food off but I guess I was on autopilot, because when I looked up to see where I was after awhile, I was sitting down, leaning against the Sacred Tree. Shrugging, I decided to make myself a little more comfortable. Kagome was gonna have this baby in about 2 weeks or so. I was gonna be a Dad in about 2 weeks. Unless you've ever been in the situation, you have no idea what it feels like. It's exciting, and confusing, and tiring, and (yes, I'll admit it) terrifying all at the same time.  
  
*  
  
* ~I'll show you everything  
  
Oh yeah  
  
With arms wide open  
  
(Wide open)~ *  
  
*  
  
Kagome said she wasn't able to go to her "human" doctors because they would detect something abnormal. I hated to think of my child as abnormal, but it was true. This kid was probably gonna get made fun of. I know I did. Teased all of my life because I was neither man nor demon, but a cross between the both. I was always told I was nothing. I wasn't enough of one thing to be considered anything at all. My entire life went like that, until I met Kagome. But I couldn't be sure my son (I was still determined that it was a boy) would meet someone like Kagome, who'd accept him. I didn't want him to have to experience all the things I had to. I didn't want him to grow up to be bitter, like I had. I wanted him to live a full life, even if he was a quarter demon. I wanted him to be much better than I was. I looked up to see the sky had gotten really dark. Outta the corner of my eye, I saw something flash across the heavens. Swerving my head quickly, I caught the very last descent of the shooting star. Thinking quickly, I closed my eyes and made a wish.  
  
"I wish my child doesn't grow up to be like me. I pray he has a better life, without so many mistakes. My one wish is for him to be.for him to be happy and to always know he's loved."  
  
*  
  
* ~If I had just one wish  
  
Only one demand  
  
I hope he's not like me  
  
I hope he understands  
  
That he can take this life  
  
And hold it by the hand  
  
And he can breach the world  
  
With arms wide open~ *  
  
*  
  
Arms wide open, I decided. That's how I'd greet him. With my arms spread wide open, ready to accept him, just as he was. Right then and there, I knew I'd love this child more than I loved life itself. I'd do anything for him. I'd die for him. When he was born, I would welcome him with arms wide open. I'd show him everything. I'd teach him everything I knew (at least everything that I would want to incorporate in him) I would explain the world to him. I might even introduce him to Sesshomaru. (Hmm...scratch that last one) But I would make sure the world was my son's oyster. (not sure what that means, or even what an oyster is, but Kagome uses that saying all the time) But most of all, my child would always know what love is. That's the one thing I grew up without that might've saved me a lot of grief and mistakes. And the one thing I was never given after my mother died. And the one thing, above all else, that I would absolutely pound into my son.  
  
*  
  
* ~With arms wide open  
  
Under the sunlight  
  
Welcome to this place  
  
I'll show you everything  
  
With arms wide open  
  
Now everything has changed  
  
I'll show you love  
  
I'll show you everything  
  
With arms wide open  
  
With arms wide open~ *  
  
*  
  
OK, it's been 2 weeks. I'm waiting outside now on Kaede's rooftop. Kagome's gone into labor. Pretty soon, I'm gonna be a father.  
  
"AAAAGGGGHHHH!!!" Kagome screams. I wish I could hold her hand, be with her, but Kaede said it wouldn't be a good idea right now. "Inuyasha!" She screams. That's it! I don't care what Kaede says. I'm going down to be with her. I'm climbing down now, and running into Kaede's hut.  
  
"I'm here Kagome. I'm right here, with you." I hear myself tell her. She's smiling at me. Pain courses through her body as sweat pours down her forehead. She lets out another scream of pain. My heart hurts for her. If I could, I'd take on all this pain for her. But I can't. So instead, I take her hand in mine and hold it.  
  
"One more good push Kagome. I can see thy child's head." Kaede is saying. Kagome looks over at me. "You know." Kagome is panting, ".it could very well be a girl. I never went to the doctor to find out."  
  
I smile down at her. "I don't care what it is. All I know is, it's our child, our creation. And I'm gonna love it no matter what it is."  
  
Kagome smiles back at me, then all of a sudden lets out a huge scream. My ears are ringing, but I don't mind.  
  
"WAAAHHHH!!!" I hear. I look down and see Kaede holding a wrinkly, wet bundle. "Inuyasha, will thou give Kagome and I a moment? I need to acquaint her with a few things." Kaede tells me.  
  
It's the very last thing I want to do, but I nod and step outside. There, I see all of my friends waiting. Miroku with his arm around Sango, Shippo on her shoulder, and even that scumbag Kouga's here. All smiling at me. All excited. I give them my world famous smirk.  
  
"What is it? Do I have a little niece or a nephew to play with?" Shippo is asking me. Niece or nephew? I guess Shippo is like family. They're all like family now. This kid's gonna have a lot of people that it can depend on. This will be this child's family, just like it became mine.  
  
I snap out of my thoughts and shrug my shoulders. "I don't know yet." Right as I say that, Kaede calls me. "Inuyasha, thou may return and meet thy new child."  
  
I turn around to see her inside the hut sitting next to Kagome. I walk inside and see Kagome holding you in her arms. She smiles up at me and whispers quietly in your ear, "That's your Daddy." Kagome is now holding you out to me. As I walk, I know, as soon as I put you in my arms, everything will change. Nothing will ever go back to the way it was. I don't care if you're a girl or a boy. I just want to love you. I take a deep breath, grin, and spread my arms wide open, ready to hold you and show you everything.  
  
***  
  
***  
  
***  
  
~I'll show you everything  
  
Oh yeah  
  
With arms wide open  
  
Wide open...~  
  
***  
  
***  
  
***  
  
~*~THE END~*~  
  
I hope you guys liked it. I got the idea the other day when I heard this song on the radio. I couldn't hear it all that well, and I forgot that my friend had burned me Creed's CD. So I looked for this song and found it. I was too lazy to get the lyrics offline so I had to listen to the song and write the words down as I heard them. Which is how this story was born. (forgive me if any of the words are wrong) I originally thought this would be a romance, but it didn't quite work out that way after I read the lyrics. But I hope this one lived up to my other songfic. Please send me a review to tell me if you think so, OK? . 


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